Priyanka Borpujari - Empowering Complex Narratives

“In every conflict the first thing to go is truth, and the first killed victim is the messenger.”

“Editors are not interested in mundane stories because we have stopped listening entirely”

Who decides which stories get to be told? Who defines what an important story actually is? Priyanka Borjupari shares stories of her experiences as a journalist in all parts of the world, and her views on how storytelling affects the way that we view what’s important and what is not. 

Many aspects of our world, like countries and the people around us, are ascribed meaning whether we want them to or not. Those meanings create presumptive stories that inform us how things are, and tend to make us forget that what actually connects us is the mundane. We all have a similar aspiration to have a better life for our loved ones and ourselves, and that is what ultimately connects us. Current gatekeepers of stories, like large magazines, newspapers and editors, all decide what’s important based on their presumptions, but what about telling stories of the mundane human experiences? 

The future of journalism should allow for the nuances in being human. After the pandemic, an event that connected and affected all of humanity, we have a unique opportunity to fight and uplift new types of stories, and let people and nations be many things.